Wall construction



March 28, 1961 Filed Jan. 18, 1956 A. E. FENTIMAN 2,976,968

WALL CONSTRUCTION 3 Sheets-Sheet l Inventor A. El FENTIMAN WALL CONSTRUCTION March 28, 1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 18, 1956 ventor ARTHUR E EFENTIMAN dbl/f ttorney 2,976,968 WALL CONSTRUCTION Arthur E. Fentiman, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, assignor, by mesne assignments, to Clarence Frank Feutiman, Arthur Edward Fentiman, and Harold Gordon Fentiman, trading as Triodelic Structures, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Filed Jan. 18, 1956, Ser. No. 559,988

4 Claims. (Cl. 18934) My invention relates to skeleton walls for building,

structures. 7

'In present day practice of building skeleton walls a common procedure is to construct the wall of bars or tubes which may be assembled by making threaded er1- gagement with conventional building units such as couplings, bends, T-pieces etc., or they may be connected by many forms of clamps.

A common fault of such constructions is that it is not possible to determine and estimate if any internal stresses or strains are set up in the assembled structure. That such stresses and strains do exist is evidenced by the' warping or distortion of the walls of the structure, and this in most cases is visible since the walls do not lie in plane surfaces. The cause of such defects is not diflicult to understand since conventional building units must be maintained in a definite relationship to each other.

duringassembly, and it is not uncommon to see a workman holding one unit with a wrench whilst using a second wrench in an endeavour to tighten another unit at the opposite end of a threaded tube or rod into proper relationship with the first unit.

This procedure is repeated at every joint and if there is the slightest variation in the length of the threaded ends of the tubes or rods and with the connecting units, then that variation may cause a stress or strain in the assembled wall. These variations do happen frequently and are cumulative in their effect and action and if each unit of a structure is not carefully calibrated or measured then there will not be the desired uniformity between similar elements of the structure, with the inevitable result that internal stresses are brought into being with the resulting straining of the structure.

When the success of making these threaded joints rests entirely on the precision of execution by the human equation then the range of error is unfortunately usually high and there is no correction of inexactitudes of this nature even with the closest vigilance and constant measuring of the units assembled. This is of course not only time consuming but requires the services of highly skilled labour, so that the fabrication of skeleton walls under these circumstances is very costly and there is no guarantee of uniformity.

Further it is not possible to remove a defective threaded tube or rod from a completed structure without stressing'and straining the structure and this further adds to the forces tending to distort the structure.

When a building is made with multiple walls, it will be evident that the transverse binding rods or tubes extending between and threaded or clamped tov the walls must'be of the same uniform length when assembled in position, otherwise stresses set up by these binding rods or tubes aggravate the stresses and strains alreadyfexisting in the two or more walls.

Stresses and strains in a wall structure seldom if ever balance, but on the contrary are additive andinc'rea se the finalstress and strain in the whole'structurfe. v i

-,Since buildings are completed by attachingsiding aid alsoconstitute binding members 'for dual or multiple highly advantageous to have each skeleton wall lying in a single plane surface, and this also applies to roof structures.

With this knowledge before me I realize that the following objects would enhance the possibility of producing a skeleton wall or multiple wall free from the disadvantages now apparent in the building art.

One of the objects of my invention is to eliminate, as

far as possible, internal stress and strain in the skeleton 'or strain.

Still a further object is to construct a skeleton wall of tubes, rods, bars or thelike arranged in triangular forms with their apices secured by connectors which will wall construction.

Another object is'to render the triangular forms used in the fabrication of a skeleton wall. to be self aligning in the assembled structure, and any tendency to distortion will be resisted by all the triangles using a common connector.

Still a further objectis to give to the fabricated wall great strength and durability together with lightness of weight.

Another object is to make corresponding parts alike and interchangeable so that speedy construction of .a

wall may be carried out.

Further objects will be made clear as the specification apart from each other and by reference tovFigure 1 it will be clearthat the connectors in one roware staggered relatively to the connectors in another row so that these connectors not only perform the functions of connecting the tubular walls of the triangles but they also align the triangle so that all the triangles constituting the wall lie in a single plane surface.

This construction also makes full use of the tensile strength of the material from which the tubes are formed? as the tubes engage the connectors in such a manner that they are in alignment with tubular walls of othertriangles located on a'diametrically opposite .side of the connector, and in this way the tensile strength is spread, over or imparted to the several members of construction of the wall.

The connectors which are used are of unique construc- 1 tion and perform three different functions, first they corinect the members of thetriangles, secondly they assist: in aligning the triangles to lie in a single plane and they. distribute the tensile strength of the tubes constituting the wall uniformlyover the wall.

I have adopted a repeat method of fabricatinga which simplifiesthe assembly of the wall since when, one section of the'wallis built the next section is assent-,

bled in exactly thesame manner.

By using similar equilateral triangles I also walls of all the trianglesof a uniform length so they are interchangeable. g By arranging the triangles, in juxtaposition, eacht lar wa-ll of a triangle is common to its adjacent tria 'and this contributory to the triangles lying in a single Patented Mar. 2 1961 roofing to the skeleton frame, it will be clear that it is plane and it is also contributory to all the triangles arranged around a. connector resisting distortion of any one triangle.

When multiple walls are constructed the connectors CX'.

tend beyond the face of the firstwalland form connectors on another wall which is built up in parallelism with the first wall and these walls are tied to each other in spaced relation by the connectors.

So that the nature of my invention will be clearly understood I have illustrated and described in detail multiple wall construction or soscalled space frames which embody my invention but I wish it to be understood that I. do not limit my invention to these particular Walls, but reserve the right to modify the same and alter the fabrication within the scope of my appended claims.

In the drawings: 1

Figure 1 is a front elevation of part of a wall structure embodying my invention.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary perspective view of a portion of a double walled structure showing the arrangement of triangular frames in each wall arranged in juxta position relatively to a connector or connectors with each tubular wall of a triangle being common to an adjacent triangle and the connectors forming tieing members be tween and retaining the two spaced walls in parallelism.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary perspective view of a portion of a triple wall structure showing the arrangement of the triangular frames in each wall arranged in juxta position relatively to a connector or connectors, with each tubular wall of a triangle being common to an adjacent triangle, all the connectors extending transversely across the triple wall structure and forming tieing members between all the walls and maintaining these walls in parallelism.

Figure 4 is an end view of a connector showing a plurality of tubes in engagement therewith and extending radially therefrom, the tubes being broken away.

Figure 5 is an elevation of a tubular member with the opposite ends flattened, these ends being arranged in alignment.

Like characters of reference refer to like parts in the several figures.

Referring to the drawings, A represents a portion of a wall constructed of a plurality of tubular skeleton triangles e.g., B, C, D and E, etc. The bottom wall of the triangles B are arranged in alignment and the adjacent ends of these tubes make engagement with the connectors F and the side walls 11 of the triangles are in engagement at the lower end with the connector F and extend upwardly converging to their apices which are connected by connectors F By inserting tubes 12 between the connectors F a series of tubular triangles C are formed and it will be seen that the walls 11 of the triangles B and C are common to both triangles.

Extending upwardly from the connectors F are angularly disposed tubes 13 which converge at their upper ends to engage connectors P so that skeleton tubular triangles D are formed, and the connectors F at the apices of these triangles are engaged by the tubes 14 so forming a further series of triangles E. The building of these triangles oneach other forms a continuous uniform wall structure. In fabricating the wall these triangles are preferably equilateral so that their tubular walls are interchangeable.

The connectors F, F and F are of similar construction in all respects, so I shall describe one of these connectors, namely F since it is located in the body of the wall. The connector F is preferably formed of a cylindrical rod of the desired diameter and length and around the periphery of the connector a plurality of radial disposed keyways 15 are provided, each keyway extending longitudinally from end to end of the connector and by reference to Figure 4 it will be seen that oppositely disposed keyways are arranged diametrically opposite each cesses 21 therebetween, and these flattened ends ar designed to be inserted edgewise into the keyways 15 and driven into the keyways with the ribs 20 and recesses 21 of the flattened ends making complemental engagement with the recesses 17 and ribs 18 in the lateral walls 16 of the keyways. V

The flattened ends 19 of the tubes are in alignment and lie in the same axial plane extending longitudinally through the tubes. The flattened ends 19 of the tubes remote from the connector F engage with the keyways in the other similar and adjacent connectors as shown,

in Figure 1. Since there are six keyways illustrated in the connector F it will be clear that this portion of the wall around the connector is formed of six similar equilateral triangles grouped around the connector F In assembling a single wall the connectors F, F, F etc., will be of the thickness of the wall, so that when the flattened ends 19 of the tubes are driven into the keyways, the edges 24 of the flattened ends will lie flush with the end faces of the connector so that there is no possibility of misplacing the tubes relatively to the connectors.

It will be clear that the connectors in one horizontal row of the wall are staggered relatively to the connectors in an adjacent horizontal wall, and the connectors in one vertical row are staggered relatively to the connectors in an adjacent vertical row, and the angular points of each triangle is rigidly connected in relation to its adjacent triangles so that this assembly of triangles will bring all the surface areas of the triangles into a single plane and the wall so constructed is self aligning. Further the arrangement of the triangles prevents distortion of the wall since each triangle is contributory in resisting any forces of deformation.

By reference to Figures 4 and 5 it will be clear that the bottom edge of the flattened ends 19 of the tubes lies at right angles to the length of the tube and intimately fits the bottom of the keyway 15 so if any force is applied to the tubes to displace them other'than in a plane parallel to that of the wall, then these bottom edges will grip very tightly into the bottom of the keyway and resist the force of distortion.

In assembling a dual wall structure, as shown in Figure 2, the two walls A and G are assembled in the manner described above and are arranged in spaced relation and r in parallelism. The length of the connectors F, F etc. is such that the connectors will extend transversely across between the two walls A and G with the end faces of the connectors lying substantially in the planes of the outer faces of their respective walls A andG, and the conn ctqrs function as tying members between the walls A and G so that a strong and durable double wall is thus constructed.

In the arrangement of tubes disclosed in the specification it will be clear that when a tube is subjected to axial pull, the force will be transmitted to the co-acting connectors of the tube and the pull distributed to the other tubes arranged around lhG'COHIlEClOl and these tubes set up a joint resistance to the initial axial pull. As each the complete structure is one of great strength and light in rigidity, but the wall may also be extremely Weight. 7

When a triple wall structure 'is to be fabricated and to facilitate-placing'the wall G in its propercentral the walls A, G and H will be arranged ,astshown in Figure 3 J position the connectors F, F etc., will be marked, as at 3, intermediate of their ends as to the position which the wall G will occupy. The length of the connectors depends on the width of the triple wall structure but the walls A and H will be assembled at the ends of the connectors, and the wall G in the specified place arranged on beforehand. The fabrication of the wall G in the desired position does not present any difficulty as the assembly of the various tubes is as described above in the construction of wall A. The three Walls A, G and H are held in their positions relatively to each other by the connectors F, F etc., which tie the Walls firmly together.

This triple wall will have the advantage of greater strength as compared with a single or a double wall construction and will be used where conditions warrant.

It was notthought necessary to describe in detail the construction of the walls G and H since these are each a facsimile of the wall A, and to further describe them would only result in prolixity in the specification.

If a building is to be constructed in a remote region then the various elements of the structure, namely the tubes and connectors could be shipped by air, and since these tubes and connectors may be manufactured of an extrudable metal there would be no variation in the dimensions of the parts.

When assembling a wall it is only necessary to insert the flattened ends 19 of the tubes edgewise into the ends of the keyways and with a hammer drive the flattened ends 19 into full engagement with the keyways until the outer edge 24 of the flattened end 19 is flush with the end face of the connectors F and F etc., or until the outer edge 24 reaches the position marked Z on the connector which the flattened end 19 is to occupy.

As all the connectors are of standard size and the tubes are of standard diameter and length, the connecting of the flattened ends of the tubes with the connectors does not set up any stresses in the assembly of the walls. It is to be understood that the skeleton triangles may be formed of rods, bars, or the like, of any suitable cross-section. Walls of this type can be erected by partially skilled labour, keeping the cost of assembly low.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

1. A multiple wall structure comprising a plurality of spaced skeleton walls each formed of a plurality of adjacent triangular areas bounded by side members, each pair of adjacent triangular areas having a common side member, the ends of each said side member terminating at equidistantly spaced loci, the common side members of adjacent triangular areas converging to associated loci, an integer connector at each locus removably secured to the converging common side members of adjacent triangular areas, each connector extending transversely across all the skeleton walls constituting the multiple wall structure and maintaining the skeleton walls in parallel and preselected spaced relation, with the ends of the connectors lying in the planes of the outer skeleton walls of the multiple Wall, said integer connectors comprising hubs of substantial length and having peripheral radially disposed keyways extending the whole length of the hub, permitting the positioning of a skeleton wall between the outer skeleton walls of the multiple wall in any preselected intermediate position and in parallelism with the outer skeleton walls, each of the skeleton walls being self-aligning, with their triangular areas lying in the same plane.

2. A multiple wall structure including a pair of spacxl skeleton wells arranged in parallel relation, each of said skeleton walls comprising a plurality of adjacent triangular areas bounded by side members and lying in the same plane, each pair of adjacent triangular areas having a common side member susceptible to being in tension when pressure is applied to the wall, the ends of each side member terminating in spaced loci, the common side members of adjacent triangular areas converging to associated loci, and an integer connector at each locus removably secured to the common side members of adjacent triangular areas converging at the locus, said integer connectors comprising a hub of substantiallength extending between and being common to said spaced skeleton walls and having peripheral radially disposed keyways extending the length thereof, each of the keyways being open to either end of the hub, for facile insertion and removal of any one of the side members independently of and without interfering with the interconnection of the other side members.

3. 'A multiple wall structure comprising a plurality of spaced skeleton walls arranged in parallel relation, each skeleton wall comprising a plurality of adjacent triangular areas bounded by side members and lying in' the same plane, each pair of adjacent triangular areas having a common side member, the ends of each side.

member terminating in spaced loci, the common side members of adjacent triangular areas converging to associated loci, and an integer connector at each locus removably secured to the common side members of adjacent triangular areas converging at the locus, each of said integer connectors extending between and being common to the spaced skeleton walls and having peripheral radially disposed keyways extending the length thereof for slidably receiving one end of the common side members of adjacent triangular areas converging at the locus so that the skeleton walls may be spaced apart a preselected distance along the length of the integer connectors.

4. The wall construction as specified in claim 3 in which the side members of the triangular areas are rods with integral flat keyed ends interlocked with the keyways in the integer connectors, said flat keyed ends being substantially narrower circumferentially of the integer connector than the intermediate portion of the rod.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 563,529 Wilson July 7, 1896 1,908,757 Hathorn May 16, 1933 1,976,188 Nozawa Oct. 9, 1934 2,116,584 Shelby May 10, 1938 2,682,235 Fuller June 29, 1954 2,709,975 Parker June 7, 1955 I FOREIGN PATENTS 24,087 Great Britain Dec. 15, 1914 165,050 Australia Sept. 7, 1955 479,820 Italy Apr. 15, 1953 682,854 France Feb. 18, 1930 OTHER REFERENCES Construction Methods, April 1932 (page 20). Pages 144-151 of the publication Architectural Forum, August 1951, vol. 95, N0. 2. 

